Dr Shane Clifton – PhD, BTh (Hons), BTh, Adv.Dip.Th, BEc
Director of Research and Head of Theology
Shane is a member of the School of Christian Studies, and specialises in the following areas: Theology.
Biography
Shane is married to Elly, and together they are the parents of three boys, Jeremy, Jacob and Lachlan. In addition to his roles as Head of Theology, Shane is the editor of Australasian Pentecostal Studies journal, and chair of the Asia Pacific Theological Association's theological commission. In October 2010 Shane suffered a serious accident that left a quadriplegic. He is an occasional blogger, and has also written about some of his experiences since the accident - see http://shaneclifton.wordpress.com/
Currently Teaching
THE101 - Understanding the Faith: A Survey of Christian Doctrine • THE203 - Personal and Public Ethics. • THE301 - Triune God and Creation • THE302 - Christ and Salvation • THE315 - Theology and Popular Culture • THE401 - Theological Horizons of Worldview • THE501 - Christ and Salvation • THE502 - Trinity • THE504 - Theology and Popular Culture • THE505 - Pentecostal/Charismatic Hermeneutics • THE550 - Influential Contemporary Theologians • THE551 - Seminar in Theological Issues.
Research Interests
Ecclesiology, Pentecostal Studies, Globalisation, Theology and Film
Academic Qualifications
2005
PhD (Australian Catholic University)
Dissertation Title An analysis of the developing ecclesiology of the Assemblies of God in Australia
2001
BTh (Hons) (Sydney College of Divinity)
Dissertation Title Pentecostal Theological Method: A Colourful and Creative Approach
1999
BTh (Sydney College of Divinity)
1998
Adv.Dip.Th (Australian College of Theology)
1992
BEc (Macquarie University)
Selected Publications
Book — Published in 2009
Citation:
Globalization and the Mission of the Church, co-authored with Neil Ormerod, Ecclesiological Investigations Series, T&T Clark, Nov. 2009
Extract: Various social, political, economic and cultural commentators are presently arguing that human history is reaching a decisive stage in its development, a stage marked by increased interconnection between peoples, the compression of space and time, a sharing of ideas at unprecedented levels, global trade and finance, and so on. The shorthand word used to encompass these phenomena is “globalization”. Some embrace it, others reject it, while still others dispute its existence. But with the abundance of literature and debate that it generates, the topic cannot be ignored. From its inception in the missionary mandate of Jesus (Matthew 28), Christianity has had a global dimension to its mission. Christianity is not a spectator to globalization but one of its agents, one of the forces at work which have extended interconnection between peoples, shared ideas and promoted social, political and cultural links. The purpose of the present work is not to provide a complete response to the question of the mission of the church in a globalizing world, but to establish a framework within which answers may be sought. Grounded in the writings of Bernard Lonergan and Robert Doran, it develops a theology of history and addresses the churches response to the impact of globalization on vital, social, cultural, personal and religious values. The project brings together the perspectives of Catholicism and Pentecostalism, the former providing a depth of wisdom and tradition, the latter drawing on the insight of a newly emerging movement that has taken root in every continent with remarkable energy and enthusiasm. Read more here… (external link)
Book — Published in 2009
Citation:
Pentecostal Churches in Transition: Analysing the developing ecclesiology of the Assemblies of God in Australia, Global Pentecostal & Charismatic Studies Series, Boston: Brill, June 2009
Extract: The global growth of Pentecostal movements during the course of the twentieth century has been widely documented although, to date, there has been little written on their developing ecclesiology. After making the case for a concrete rather than idealised approach to ecclesiology, this book describes and analyses the transitions that have framed the ways in which Australian Pentecostals have understood church life and mission. From a loosely knit faith missions movement, to congregational free church structures, to the so-called apostolic models of mega-churches, Australian pentecostalism stands as a microcosmos of ecclesial developments that have occurred throughout the world. This book, therefore, provides a means of reflecting upon what has been gained and lost in the process of ecclesiological change. Read more here… (external link)
Book Chapter — Published in 2009
Citation:
“Preaching the ‘Full Gospel’ in the Context of Global Environmental Crisis”, in The Spirit Renews the Face of the Earth: Pentecostal Forays in Science and Theology of Creation, edited by Amos Yong (Eugene, Ore.: Pickwick Press, 2009).
Extract: This paper seeks to understand the reasons for the tendency of Pentecostals to be indifferent to environmental concerns, focusing particularly on its theology of creation and its proclamation of the fourfold or full gospel. It argues that, in appropriating literal six day young earth conceptions of creation and associated narrow fundamentalist theologies of salvation and eschatology, Pentecostals have proclaimed a message that, in the face of the contemporary global environmental crisis, can no longer be called a “full gospel.” It also critiques the influence of prosperity teaching on contemporary Pentecostal values, which results in the movement uncritically appropriating the capitalist and materialist ideologies of Western society that have created and sustain global environmental crises. Arguing that fundamentalist conceptions of creation are not central to Pentecostal self-understanding, and that prosperity teaching needs to be reframed and redeemed, the paper then suggests that the Pentecostal orientation to the Spirit can facilitate the development of a holistic pneumatological theology of creation, one that encompasses not only the cultural and social dimensions of the gospel, but also its cosmic scope. The paper goes on to suggest ways in which the Pentecostal proclamation of the full gospel can be expanded for the sake of establishing an ecological ethos that is capable of pervading the movement’s Spirit empowered mission. This includes the recognition that Jesus saves the cosmos, that Jesus heals a sick creation, that Jesus baptises in the Spirit for the sake of empowering the church to participate in His liberating the earth, and that Jesus’ return results in the earth’s renewal. Read more here… (external link)
Book Chapter — Published in 2009
Citation:
“Australian Theology,” in Global Dictionary of Theology, edited by William A. Dyrness and Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP, 2009
Read more here… (external link)
Journal Article — Published in 2007
Citation:
“Pentecostal Ecclesiology: A Methodological Proposal for a Diverse Movement,” Journal of Pentecostal Theology, 15:2 (2007): 213-232.
Journal Article — Published in 2007
Citation:
“The Spirit and Doctrinal Development: A functional analysis of the Traditional Pentecostal Doctrine of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit,” Pneuma, The Journal for the Society of Pentecostal Studies, 29 (2007):4-22.
Read more here… (external link)
Journal Article — Published in 2006
Citation:
“Pentecostal Hermeneutics: an Open and Creative Approach,” eOkonomia, 1 (2006): http://oikon.webjournals.org.
Read more here… (external link)
Journal Article — Published in 2006
Citation:
“Pragmatic Ecclesiology: The Apostolic Revolution and the Ecclesiology of the Assemblies of God in Australia,” Australasian Pentecostal Studies, 9 (2005/6):23-47.
Contact Shane
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